Agnieszka Otwinowska-Kasztelanic | University of Warsaw (original) (raw)
Papers by Agnieszka Otwinowska-Kasztelanic
Language Learning, 2020
Some second language (L2) acquisition researchers have suggested that learners should be made awa... more Some second language (L2) acquisition researchers have suggested that learners should be made aware of cross-linguistic similarity for them to benefit from cognateness. To test this assumption, we ran two longitudinal classroom quasi-experiments with Polish learners of English. We chose 30 Polish-English cognates, 30 false cognates, and 30 non-cognates matched on L2 frequency and concreteness and embedded them in exercises typical of English language teaching textbooks. Participants learned the words with their teachers in their classes at school. We manipulated the experimental group's awareness of orthographic cross-linguistic similarity in awareness-raising workshops. The results revealed that the participants had a higher chance of knowing cognates than other word Agnieszka Otwinowska and Jakub Szewczyk contributed equally to this work.
International Journal of Bilingual Education and Bilingualism , 2019
http://www.tandfonline.com/eprint/ISe9NWGf9d4gWWQV8PpR/full In this study we explored factors... more http://www.tandfonline.com/eprint/ISe9NWGf9d4gWWQV8PpR/full
In this study we explored factors that determine the knowledge of L2 words with orthographic neighbours in L1 (cognates and false cognates). We asked 150 Polish learners of English to translate 105 English non-cognate words, cognates, and false-cognates into Polish, and to assess the confidence of each translation. Confidence ratings allows us to employ a novel analytic procedure which disentangles knowing cognates and false cognates from strategic guessing. Mixed-effects logistic regression models revealed that cognates were known better, whereas false cognates were known worse, relative to non-cognate controls. The advantage of knowing cognates, but not false cognates, was modulated by the degree of similarity to their L1 equivalents. The knowledge of cognates and false cognates was not affected by the frequency of their formal equivalent in L1. Based on these findings we conclude how cross-linguistic formal similarity affects L2 word learnability, proposing a mechanism by which cognates and false cognates are acquired.
Language Awareness, 2017
http://www.tandfonline.com/eprint/WbNy98YIAp3y7Tb2tqJy/full The training of language teachers... more http://www.tandfonline.com/eprint/WbNy98YIAp3y7Tb2tqJy/full
The training of language teachers still follows traditional models of teachers’ competences and awareness, focusing solely on the target language. Such models are incompatible with multilingual pedagogy, whereby languages are not taught in isolation, and learners’ background languages are activated to enhance the process. When teaching bilinguals/multilinguals, the English-only policy is inadequate, and teachers’ competence in only one language may not suffice. Thus, an extended model of teachers’ plurilingual awareness is proposed, including metalinguistic, psycholinguistic and sociolinguistic awareness, and the traditional model of teachers’ language awareness as a part of the cross-linguistic component. In the model, teachers’ plurilingual awareness partly stems from their multilingualism.
The impact of multilingualism on teachers’ awareness was tested on Polish teachers of English (N = 222) differing in language knowledge beyond English (L3-Ln). Their attitudes towards principles of multilingual pedagogy were surveyed. Next, cluster analysis was used to differentiate between the teachers’ degrees of proficiency in other languages known, and factor analysis was run to identify the main factors in the survey, which correspond to the components in the teacher's plurilingual awareness model. A subsequent MANOVA revealed that English teachers’ multilingualism indeed underlies their plurilingual awareness and readiness to comply with multilingual approaches to teaching.
KEYWORDS: Teachers’ language awareness, plurilingual awareness, multilingualism, English as a foreign language, language teachers
Studies in Second Language Acquisition, 2020
Bilingual language development might be characterized by transfer, deceleration, and/or accelerat... more Bilingual language development might be characterized by transfer, deceleration, and/or acceleration, the first two being relevant for the language impairment diagnosis. Studies on bilingual children’s productive phonology show evidence of transfer, but little is known about deceleration in this population. Here, we focused on phonological transfer and deceleration in L1 speech of typically developing Polish-English bilingual children of Polish migrants to the United Kingdom
(aged 4.7–7). We analyzed L1 speech samples of 30 bilinguals and 2 groups of Polish monolinguals, matched to the bilinguals on age or vocabulary size. We found that bilingual children’ speech (both simultaneous and early sequential) was characterized by transfer, but not by deceleration, suggesting that while phonological deceleration phases out in children above the age of 4.7, transfer does not. We discuss our findings within the PRIMIR model of bilingual phonological acquisition (Curtin et al., 2011) and show their implications for SLT practices.
International Journal of Bilingual Education and Bilingualism , 2020
http://www.tandfonline.com/eprint/qw6Yffxcxu26fE7cRX5t/full Reading and telling stories to ch... more http://www.tandfonline.com/eprint/qw6Yffxcxu26fE7cRX5t/full
Reading and telling stories to children improves their narrative skills, which is well-documented for monolinguals, but not for bilinguals. We investigated whether bilingual narratives improve when the child is provided with a model story. We studied the narratives of Polish-English bilingual children (n=75, mean age 5;7 years; months) raised in the UK. We elicited narratives through picture stories in two modes: told spontaneously and retold after a model provided by an adult experimenter. The bilinguals told and retold stories in Polish and English. The study combined a within-subject design, comparing the bilinguals' two languages, and a between-subject design, comparing the stories told and retold in Polish by the bilinguals and by Polish age-matched monolinguals (n=75). We investigated whether retelling might improve bilingual and monolingual storytelling to the same extent. In the stories, we assessed both the macrostructure (e.g. story structure and answered comprehension questions) and microstructure (e.g. type-token ratio). We found a positive effect of retelling for the macrostructure in both monolinguals and bilinguals (regardless of the language). As for the microstructure, when retelling, children told longer stories, regardless of the language (Polish, English) and group (bilingual, monolingual). We argue that retelling stories improves the narrative skills of bilinguals.
Keywords: narrative; macrostructure measures; microstructure measures; bilinguals; monolinguals
https://doi.org/10.1080/13670050.2018.1434124
Frontiers in Psychology, Sep 4, 2017
Most studies on bilingual language development focus on children’s second language (L2). Here, we... more Most studies on bilingual language development focus on children’s second language (L2). Here, we investigated first language (L1) development of Polish-English early migrant bilinguals in four domains: vocabulary, grammar, phonological processing and discourse. We first compared Polish language skills between bilinguals and their Polish non-migrant monolingual peers, and then investigated the influence of the cumulative exposure to L1 and L2 on bilinguals’ performance. We then examined whether high exposure to L1 could possibly minimize the gap between monolinguals and bilinguals.
We analyzed data from 233 typically developing children (88 bilingual, 145 monolingual) aged 4;0 to 7;5 (years; months) on six language measures in Polish: receptive vocabulary, productive vocabulary, receptive grammar, productive grammar (sentence repetition), phonological processing (non-word repetition) and discourse abilities (narration). Information about language exposure was obtained via parental questionnaires. For each language task, we analyzed the data from the subsample of bilinguals who had completed all the tasks in question and from monolinguals matched one-on-one to the bilingual group on age, SES (measured by years of mother’s education), gender, non-verbal IQ and short term memory.
The bilingual children scored lower than monolinguals in all language domains, except discourse. The group differences were more pronounced on the productive tasks (vocabulary, grammar, phonological processing) and moderate on the receptive tasks (vocabulary and grammar). L1 exposure correlated positively with the vocabulary size and phonological processing. Grammar scores were not related to the levels of L1 exposure, but were predicted by general cognitive abilities. L2 exposure negatively influenced productive grammar in L1, suggesting possible L2 transfer effects on L1 grammatical performance. Children’s narrative skills benefitted from exposure to two languages: both L1 and L2 exposure influenced story structure scores in L1. Importantly, we did not find any evidence (in any of the tasks in which the gap was present) that the performance gap between monolinguals and bilinguals could be fully closed with high amounts of L1 input.
Języki Obce w Szkole 3: 77-85, 2018
English abstract Multilingual learners: where do they belong in Polish schools? The article aims ... more English abstract
Multilingual learners: where do they belong in Polish schools?
The article aims to draw attention to bilingual and multilingual learners in Polish schools. It briefly defines bilingualism and multilingualism and then focuses on selected linguistic and cognitive features of bilingual and multilingual children, juxtaposing research findings with sensational news present in the media. Next, it presents two groups of bilinguals in the Polish educational system: those taking part in elitist bilingual education (e.g. CLIL), and those who belong to language and culture minorities, or have experienced migration. The article offers some advice on teaching Polish bilingual learners. It shows how foreign language teachers can help subject teachers prepare lessons focusing on both content and the Polish language.
IRAL: International Review of Applied Linguistics in Language Teaching, 2018
Laufer and Hulstijn (2001) suggest that the motivational-cognitive construct of involvement may e... more Laufer and Hulstijn (2001) suggest that the motivational-cognitive construct of involvement may explain and predict different levels of effectiveness for vocabulary-learning tasks. Drawing on their original work and on later research on the involvement load hypothesis (ILH), this study set out to compare the effectiveness of carefully-designed tasks for incidental vocabulary acquisition in children. Thirty-eight EFL elementary-level 10-year-olds from a public school in Warsaw, Poland, participated in the experiment. Divided into three groups, the participants performed three different sequences of tasks, each sequence inducing similar levels of involvement load. In order to measure receptive lexical learning and retention of meaning and spelling, the children were tested with an orthography test, an L2-L1 translation test, and a multiple-choice test immediately after the treatment, and one week later. In support of the ILH, the MANOVA results showed no significant differences between the treatments (irrespective of them being input- or output-based) in any of the test measurements, either in the immediate or in the delayed posttest. We discuss the results in light of the ILH, and outline some limitations and possible implications for pedagogy.
European languages share a number of cognate words and expressions. Awareness of such words may e... more European languages share a number of cognate words and expressions. Awareness of such words may enhance vocabulary acquisition by triggering positive transfer from the native language. However, as research shows, access to this lexicon depends on the psychotypological distance between the learner's L1, L2 and Ln, the number of languages known and the learner's vocabulary learning strategies.
The present paper aims at showing the relation between the theory of affordances and crosslinguis... more The present paper aims at showing the relation between the theory of affordances and crosslinguistic similarities in the area of lexis. It argues that the presence of cognate vocabulary between L1, L2 and Ln may constitute a set of affordances for language learners. It also discusses the key typological and psychotypological factors in noticing the affordances, as well as the level of L2 and the number of languages known to the learner contributing to the learner's awareness. In the research part, the paper focuses on investigating the awareness of cognate vocabulary in Polish multilingual and bilingual learners of English. It attempts to show the link between their awareness of cross-linguistic similarities in the area of lexis and the affordances available, with regard to their language level and the number of languages known. It suggests that multilinguals are advantaged over bilinguals in noticing the role of lexical similarities, and hence they possess a wider range of affordances than bilinguals at the same language level. Finally, the paper presents some implications for syllabus design and teacher training based on the research findings.
The present paper discusses the components of language teachers' awareness, which should differ q... more The present paper discusses the components of language teachers' awareness, which should differ qualitatively and quantitatively from that of language learners and users. It is argued that especially teachers of English, the European lingua franca, should develop plurilingual awareness to train learners to become multilingual citizens. This awareness involves crosslinguistic, metalinguistic and psycholinguistic knowledge concerning multiple language acquisition. Apart from that, teachers should ideally be multilingual themselves. The paper reports on a survey carried out on over 230 pre-service and in-service Polish teachers of English. It compares their levels of plurilingual awareness relative to their teaching experience, bilingualism/ multilingualism factors and the level of L3-Ln languages known. Their awareness seems to be linked with both teaching experience and multilingualism, but it is higher for multilingual teachers proficient in several languages. The paper also presents a qualitative study in the form of a guided interview on a focus group of 5 in-service teachers. This provides in-depth insight into how they understand plurilingual language teaching. Finally, conclusions are drawn concerning changes in teacher training that would enable teachers to promote plurilingual approaches in class.
Innovation in Language Learning and Teaching, 2009
Polish and English, like most European languages, share numerous cognate words and expressions wh... more Polish and English, like most European languages, share numerous cognate words and expressions which can be easily understood even by those Poles who do not speak English. A seemingly obvious classroom implication of this fact is that these vocabulary items should be used in teaching English to Poles. When presented with cognate words, even a beginner's vocabulary should surge within a relatively short time. However, as preliminary research on beginners shows, access to this lexicon is easy only in the case of learners who are trained to notice and use cognate vocabulary. The training involves raising the learners' lexical awareness. The paper reports on several pieces of research concerned with examining and raising language awareness of cognate vocabulary, which were carried out on beginning and advanced Polish learners of English. Particularly, it focuses on an experimental study meant to check how awareness raising tasks change advanced students' vocabulary learning strategies, and whether they could trigger positive transfer from Polish in receptive and productive vocabulary tasks in English. Finally, it presents implications for further research and classroom use of cognate vocabulary.
Content and Language Integrated Learning is a powerful new approach to education. When carefully ... more Content and Language Integrated Learning is a powerful new approach to education. When carefully implemented, CLIL can be successful in increasing learners' language and subject knowledge. Its methodology is different from both language teaching and subject teaching, with respect to teacher's and learners' roles and the type of language used in the classroom. While many educators in Poland still treat CLIL as almost exotic, private schools introduce this 'current trend' to satisfy parents' demands. However, the nonchalant way of implementing CLIL strongly affects the way it is perceived by children, which, in turn, influences the children's motivation to learn. The paper presents the results of two surveys which concerned Polish 10-and 11-year olds' beliefs on learning English and learning through CLIL. The quantitative results are confronted with the results of a qualitative study examining their emotions and attitudes towards the CLIL lessons of mathematics and science they are given. The results of both studies, interpreted in accordance with Cummins's BICS/CALP theory, show that the affective domain plays a role in language acquisition. The conclusions which are drawn from the studies concern the organisational aspects of implementing CLIL at the primary level, its aims, methodology, and problems related to this approach.
CLIL (Content and Language Integrated Learning), is a teaching method, in which learners develop ... more CLIL (Content and Language Integrated Learning), is a teaching method, in which learners develop linguistic competence and problem-solving abilities by learning content-subjects in another language. However, learners’ cognitive gains may depend on their affectivity. Negative affect hampers complex cognitive processing essential for problem-solving, while experiences of failed intellectual effort may lead to impaired information processing called intellectual helplessness (IH) (Sędek and McIntosh 1998). Negative affectivity among children in CLIL programs may be caused by ill-managed classes and linguistically inadequate materials (Otwinowska 2013).
Here, we explore links between affectivity and cognition in upper-primary Polish children (N=140) who learn mathematics and science in English. To that end, we use qualitative and quantitative measures to verify whether negative emotions inhibit cognitive processes. Children completed an anonymous attitude survey and the IH Scale (Sędek 1995) to investigate their affective state and symptoms of cognitive demobilization (inhibition in active problem solving). We also obtained children’s term grades in mathematics, science and English to investigate possible relationships between children’s accomplishments in those subjects and their affective responses to the CLIL modules. The study reveals symptoms of IH and negative affectivity experienced by young CLIL learners. The significant predictors of IH in the CLIL classes are negative affectivity and grades in science and mathematics. Nonetheless, grades in English do not significantly predict IH in CLIL. We explain this paradox in terms of different types of language needed in general English and CLIL classes: BICS vs. CALP (Cummins 1979).
![Research paper thumbnail of CLIL - przełomowe podejście w edukacji europejskiej [CLIL – A Crucial Approach in European Education]](https://attachments.academia-assets.com/39661444/thumbnails/1.jpg)
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Do we need to teach culture and how much culture do we need? In: J. Arabski and A. Wojtaszek (eds... more Do we need to teach culture and how much culture do we need? In: J. Arabski and A. Wojtaszek (eds.) Aspects of Culture in Second Language . Berlin: Springer.
International Journal of Multilingualism, 2012
Full text downloadable from http://ler.letras.up.pt/uploads/ficheiros/10922.pdf
The paper presents a reflection on the ways multilingual language users perceive their L2 and L3 ... more The paper presents a reflection on the ways multilingual language users perceive their L2 and L3 learning experiences in retrospect. Emphasis is placed on sequential learning of foreign languages in classroom settings for learners/users homogenous in terms of their learning histories, with L1 Polish and L2 English (advanced), but at two different levels of advancement in L3 French. Twenty beginning and twenty advanced learners of L3 French were asked to produce retrospective narratives on their L2 vs. L2 learning experiences. In the paper we offer a comparison of those learning experiences in terms of the subjects´ motivations, attitudes, learning styles and strategies, and their perceptions of crosslinguistic influences between the languages. The narratives are analysed in terms of features stable (similar) and different for both L3 learning contexts. It seems that there is a huge discrepancy between the less and the more advanced learners of L3 with respect to all the features enumerated. Thus, an attempt is made to interpret the differences between the L3 beginning and advanced learners within the threshold hypothesis framework.
Language Learning, 2020
Some second language (L2) acquisition researchers have suggested that learners should be made awa... more Some second language (L2) acquisition researchers have suggested that learners should be made aware of cross-linguistic similarity for them to benefit from cognateness. To test this assumption, we ran two longitudinal classroom quasi-experiments with Polish learners of English. We chose 30 Polish-English cognates, 30 false cognates, and 30 non-cognates matched on L2 frequency and concreteness and embedded them in exercises typical of English language teaching textbooks. Participants learned the words with their teachers in their classes at school. We manipulated the experimental group's awareness of orthographic cross-linguistic similarity in awareness-raising workshops. The results revealed that the participants had a higher chance of knowing cognates than other word Agnieszka Otwinowska and Jakub Szewczyk contributed equally to this work.
International Journal of Bilingual Education and Bilingualism , 2019
http://www.tandfonline.com/eprint/ISe9NWGf9d4gWWQV8PpR/full In this study we explored factors... more http://www.tandfonline.com/eprint/ISe9NWGf9d4gWWQV8PpR/full
In this study we explored factors that determine the knowledge of L2 words with orthographic neighbours in L1 (cognates and false cognates). We asked 150 Polish learners of English to translate 105 English non-cognate words, cognates, and false-cognates into Polish, and to assess the confidence of each translation. Confidence ratings allows us to employ a novel analytic procedure which disentangles knowing cognates and false cognates from strategic guessing. Mixed-effects logistic regression models revealed that cognates were known better, whereas false cognates were known worse, relative to non-cognate controls. The advantage of knowing cognates, but not false cognates, was modulated by the degree of similarity to their L1 equivalents. The knowledge of cognates and false cognates was not affected by the frequency of their formal equivalent in L1. Based on these findings we conclude how cross-linguistic formal similarity affects L2 word learnability, proposing a mechanism by which cognates and false cognates are acquired.
Language Awareness, 2017
http://www.tandfonline.com/eprint/WbNy98YIAp3y7Tb2tqJy/full The training of language teachers... more http://www.tandfonline.com/eprint/WbNy98YIAp3y7Tb2tqJy/full
The training of language teachers still follows traditional models of teachers’ competences and awareness, focusing solely on the target language. Such models are incompatible with multilingual pedagogy, whereby languages are not taught in isolation, and learners’ background languages are activated to enhance the process. When teaching bilinguals/multilinguals, the English-only policy is inadequate, and teachers’ competence in only one language may not suffice. Thus, an extended model of teachers’ plurilingual awareness is proposed, including metalinguistic, psycholinguistic and sociolinguistic awareness, and the traditional model of teachers’ language awareness as a part of the cross-linguistic component. In the model, teachers’ plurilingual awareness partly stems from their multilingualism.
The impact of multilingualism on teachers’ awareness was tested on Polish teachers of English (N = 222) differing in language knowledge beyond English (L3-Ln). Their attitudes towards principles of multilingual pedagogy were surveyed. Next, cluster analysis was used to differentiate between the teachers’ degrees of proficiency in other languages known, and factor analysis was run to identify the main factors in the survey, which correspond to the components in the teacher's plurilingual awareness model. A subsequent MANOVA revealed that English teachers’ multilingualism indeed underlies their plurilingual awareness and readiness to comply with multilingual approaches to teaching.
KEYWORDS: Teachers’ language awareness, plurilingual awareness, multilingualism, English as a foreign language, language teachers
Studies in Second Language Acquisition, 2020
Bilingual language development might be characterized by transfer, deceleration, and/or accelerat... more Bilingual language development might be characterized by transfer, deceleration, and/or acceleration, the first two being relevant for the language impairment diagnosis. Studies on bilingual children’s productive phonology show evidence of transfer, but little is known about deceleration in this population. Here, we focused on phonological transfer and deceleration in L1 speech of typically developing Polish-English bilingual children of Polish migrants to the United Kingdom
(aged 4.7–7). We analyzed L1 speech samples of 30 bilinguals and 2 groups of Polish monolinguals, matched to the bilinguals on age or vocabulary size. We found that bilingual children’ speech (both simultaneous and early sequential) was characterized by transfer, but not by deceleration, suggesting that while phonological deceleration phases out in children above the age of 4.7, transfer does not. We discuss our findings within the PRIMIR model of bilingual phonological acquisition (Curtin et al., 2011) and show their implications for SLT practices.
International Journal of Bilingual Education and Bilingualism , 2020
http://www.tandfonline.com/eprint/qw6Yffxcxu26fE7cRX5t/full Reading and telling stories to ch... more http://www.tandfonline.com/eprint/qw6Yffxcxu26fE7cRX5t/full
Reading and telling stories to children improves their narrative skills, which is well-documented for monolinguals, but not for bilinguals. We investigated whether bilingual narratives improve when the child is provided with a model story. We studied the narratives of Polish-English bilingual children (n=75, mean age 5;7 years; months) raised in the UK. We elicited narratives through picture stories in two modes: told spontaneously and retold after a model provided by an adult experimenter. The bilinguals told and retold stories in Polish and English. The study combined a within-subject design, comparing the bilinguals' two languages, and a between-subject design, comparing the stories told and retold in Polish by the bilinguals and by Polish age-matched monolinguals (n=75). We investigated whether retelling might improve bilingual and monolingual storytelling to the same extent. In the stories, we assessed both the macrostructure (e.g. story structure and answered comprehension questions) and microstructure (e.g. type-token ratio). We found a positive effect of retelling for the macrostructure in both monolinguals and bilinguals (regardless of the language). As for the microstructure, when retelling, children told longer stories, regardless of the language (Polish, English) and group (bilingual, monolingual). We argue that retelling stories improves the narrative skills of bilinguals.
Keywords: narrative; macrostructure measures; microstructure measures; bilinguals; monolinguals
https://doi.org/10.1080/13670050.2018.1434124
Frontiers in Psychology, Sep 4, 2017
Most studies on bilingual language development focus on children’s second language (L2). Here, we... more Most studies on bilingual language development focus on children’s second language (L2). Here, we investigated first language (L1) development of Polish-English early migrant bilinguals in four domains: vocabulary, grammar, phonological processing and discourse. We first compared Polish language skills between bilinguals and their Polish non-migrant monolingual peers, and then investigated the influence of the cumulative exposure to L1 and L2 on bilinguals’ performance. We then examined whether high exposure to L1 could possibly minimize the gap between monolinguals and bilinguals.
We analyzed data from 233 typically developing children (88 bilingual, 145 monolingual) aged 4;0 to 7;5 (years; months) on six language measures in Polish: receptive vocabulary, productive vocabulary, receptive grammar, productive grammar (sentence repetition), phonological processing (non-word repetition) and discourse abilities (narration). Information about language exposure was obtained via parental questionnaires. For each language task, we analyzed the data from the subsample of bilinguals who had completed all the tasks in question and from monolinguals matched one-on-one to the bilingual group on age, SES (measured by years of mother’s education), gender, non-verbal IQ and short term memory.
The bilingual children scored lower than monolinguals in all language domains, except discourse. The group differences were more pronounced on the productive tasks (vocabulary, grammar, phonological processing) and moderate on the receptive tasks (vocabulary and grammar). L1 exposure correlated positively with the vocabulary size and phonological processing. Grammar scores were not related to the levels of L1 exposure, but were predicted by general cognitive abilities. L2 exposure negatively influenced productive grammar in L1, suggesting possible L2 transfer effects on L1 grammatical performance. Children’s narrative skills benefitted from exposure to two languages: both L1 and L2 exposure influenced story structure scores in L1. Importantly, we did not find any evidence (in any of the tasks in which the gap was present) that the performance gap between monolinguals and bilinguals could be fully closed with high amounts of L1 input.
Języki Obce w Szkole 3: 77-85, 2018
English abstract Multilingual learners: where do they belong in Polish schools? The article aims ... more English abstract
Multilingual learners: where do they belong in Polish schools?
The article aims to draw attention to bilingual and multilingual learners in Polish schools. It briefly defines bilingualism and multilingualism and then focuses on selected linguistic and cognitive features of bilingual and multilingual children, juxtaposing research findings with sensational news present in the media. Next, it presents two groups of bilinguals in the Polish educational system: those taking part in elitist bilingual education (e.g. CLIL), and those who belong to language and culture minorities, or have experienced migration. The article offers some advice on teaching Polish bilingual learners. It shows how foreign language teachers can help subject teachers prepare lessons focusing on both content and the Polish language.
IRAL: International Review of Applied Linguistics in Language Teaching, 2018
Laufer and Hulstijn (2001) suggest that the motivational-cognitive construct of involvement may e... more Laufer and Hulstijn (2001) suggest that the motivational-cognitive construct of involvement may explain and predict different levels of effectiveness for vocabulary-learning tasks. Drawing on their original work and on later research on the involvement load hypothesis (ILH), this study set out to compare the effectiveness of carefully-designed tasks for incidental vocabulary acquisition in children. Thirty-eight EFL elementary-level 10-year-olds from a public school in Warsaw, Poland, participated in the experiment. Divided into three groups, the participants performed three different sequences of tasks, each sequence inducing similar levels of involvement load. In order to measure receptive lexical learning and retention of meaning and spelling, the children were tested with an orthography test, an L2-L1 translation test, and a multiple-choice test immediately after the treatment, and one week later. In support of the ILH, the MANOVA results showed no significant differences between the treatments (irrespective of them being input- or output-based) in any of the test measurements, either in the immediate or in the delayed posttest. We discuss the results in light of the ILH, and outline some limitations and possible implications for pedagogy.
European languages share a number of cognate words and expressions. Awareness of such words may e... more European languages share a number of cognate words and expressions. Awareness of such words may enhance vocabulary acquisition by triggering positive transfer from the native language. However, as research shows, access to this lexicon depends on the psychotypological distance between the learner's L1, L2 and Ln, the number of languages known and the learner's vocabulary learning strategies.
The present paper aims at showing the relation between the theory of affordances and crosslinguis... more The present paper aims at showing the relation between the theory of affordances and crosslinguistic similarities in the area of lexis. It argues that the presence of cognate vocabulary between L1, L2 and Ln may constitute a set of affordances for language learners. It also discusses the key typological and psychotypological factors in noticing the affordances, as well as the level of L2 and the number of languages known to the learner contributing to the learner's awareness. In the research part, the paper focuses on investigating the awareness of cognate vocabulary in Polish multilingual and bilingual learners of English. It attempts to show the link between their awareness of cross-linguistic similarities in the area of lexis and the affordances available, with regard to their language level and the number of languages known. It suggests that multilinguals are advantaged over bilinguals in noticing the role of lexical similarities, and hence they possess a wider range of affordances than bilinguals at the same language level. Finally, the paper presents some implications for syllabus design and teacher training based on the research findings.
The present paper discusses the components of language teachers' awareness, which should differ q... more The present paper discusses the components of language teachers' awareness, which should differ qualitatively and quantitatively from that of language learners and users. It is argued that especially teachers of English, the European lingua franca, should develop plurilingual awareness to train learners to become multilingual citizens. This awareness involves crosslinguistic, metalinguistic and psycholinguistic knowledge concerning multiple language acquisition. Apart from that, teachers should ideally be multilingual themselves. The paper reports on a survey carried out on over 230 pre-service and in-service Polish teachers of English. It compares their levels of plurilingual awareness relative to their teaching experience, bilingualism/ multilingualism factors and the level of L3-Ln languages known. Their awareness seems to be linked with both teaching experience and multilingualism, but it is higher for multilingual teachers proficient in several languages. The paper also presents a qualitative study in the form of a guided interview on a focus group of 5 in-service teachers. This provides in-depth insight into how they understand plurilingual language teaching. Finally, conclusions are drawn concerning changes in teacher training that would enable teachers to promote plurilingual approaches in class.
Innovation in Language Learning and Teaching, 2009
Polish and English, like most European languages, share numerous cognate words and expressions wh... more Polish and English, like most European languages, share numerous cognate words and expressions which can be easily understood even by those Poles who do not speak English. A seemingly obvious classroom implication of this fact is that these vocabulary items should be used in teaching English to Poles. When presented with cognate words, even a beginner's vocabulary should surge within a relatively short time. However, as preliminary research on beginners shows, access to this lexicon is easy only in the case of learners who are trained to notice and use cognate vocabulary. The training involves raising the learners' lexical awareness. The paper reports on several pieces of research concerned with examining and raising language awareness of cognate vocabulary, which were carried out on beginning and advanced Polish learners of English. Particularly, it focuses on an experimental study meant to check how awareness raising tasks change advanced students' vocabulary learning strategies, and whether they could trigger positive transfer from Polish in receptive and productive vocabulary tasks in English. Finally, it presents implications for further research and classroom use of cognate vocabulary.
Content and Language Integrated Learning is a powerful new approach to education. When carefully ... more Content and Language Integrated Learning is a powerful new approach to education. When carefully implemented, CLIL can be successful in increasing learners' language and subject knowledge. Its methodology is different from both language teaching and subject teaching, with respect to teacher's and learners' roles and the type of language used in the classroom. While many educators in Poland still treat CLIL as almost exotic, private schools introduce this 'current trend' to satisfy parents' demands. However, the nonchalant way of implementing CLIL strongly affects the way it is perceived by children, which, in turn, influences the children's motivation to learn. The paper presents the results of two surveys which concerned Polish 10-and 11-year olds' beliefs on learning English and learning through CLIL. The quantitative results are confronted with the results of a qualitative study examining their emotions and attitudes towards the CLIL lessons of mathematics and science they are given. The results of both studies, interpreted in accordance with Cummins's BICS/CALP theory, show that the affective domain plays a role in language acquisition. The conclusions which are drawn from the studies concern the organisational aspects of implementing CLIL at the primary level, its aims, methodology, and problems related to this approach.
CLIL (Content and Language Integrated Learning), is a teaching method, in which learners develop ... more CLIL (Content and Language Integrated Learning), is a teaching method, in which learners develop linguistic competence and problem-solving abilities by learning content-subjects in another language. However, learners’ cognitive gains may depend on their affectivity. Negative affect hampers complex cognitive processing essential for problem-solving, while experiences of failed intellectual effort may lead to impaired information processing called intellectual helplessness (IH) (Sędek and McIntosh 1998). Negative affectivity among children in CLIL programs may be caused by ill-managed classes and linguistically inadequate materials (Otwinowska 2013).
Here, we explore links between affectivity and cognition in upper-primary Polish children (N=140) who learn mathematics and science in English. To that end, we use qualitative and quantitative measures to verify whether negative emotions inhibit cognitive processes. Children completed an anonymous attitude survey and the IH Scale (Sędek 1995) to investigate their affective state and symptoms of cognitive demobilization (inhibition in active problem solving). We also obtained children’s term grades in mathematics, science and English to investigate possible relationships between children’s accomplishments in those subjects and their affective responses to the CLIL modules. The study reveals symptoms of IH and negative affectivity experienced by young CLIL learners. The significant predictors of IH in the CLIL classes are negative affectivity and grades in science and mathematics. Nonetheless, grades in English do not significantly predict IH in CLIL. We explain this paradox in terms of different types of language needed in general English and CLIL classes: BICS vs. CALP (Cummins 1979).
Do we need to teach culture and how much culture do we need? In: J. Arabski and A. Wojtaszek (eds... more Do we need to teach culture and how much culture do we need? In: J. Arabski and A. Wojtaszek (eds.) Aspects of Culture in Second Language . Berlin: Springer.
International Journal of Multilingualism, 2012
Full text downloadable from http://ler.letras.up.pt/uploads/ficheiros/10922.pdf
The paper presents a reflection on the ways multilingual language users perceive their L2 and L3 ... more The paper presents a reflection on the ways multilingual language users perceive their L2 and L3 learning experiences in retrospect. Emphasis is placed on sequential learning of foreign languages in classroom settings for learners/users homogenous in terms of their learning histories, with L1 Polish and L2 English (advanced), but at two different levels of advancement in L3 French. Twenty beginning and twenty advanced learners of L3 French were asked to produce retrospective narratives on their L2 vs. L2 learning experiences. In the paper we offer a comparison of those learning experiences in terms of the subjects´ motivations, attitudes, learning styles and strategies, and their perceptions of crosslinguistic influences between the languages. The narratives are analysed in terms of features stable (similar) and different for both L3 learning contexts. It seems that there is a huge discrepancy between the less and the more advanced learners of L3 with respect to all the features enumerated. Thus, an attempt is made to interpret the differences between the L3 beginning and advanced learners within the threshold hypothesis framework.
This book brings together linguistic, psycholinguistic and educational perspectives on the phenom... more This book brings together linguistic, psycholinguistic and educational perspectives on the phenomenon of cognate vocabulary across languages. It discusses extensive qualitative and quantitative data on Polish-English cognates and their use by learners/users of English to show the importance of cognates in language acquisition and learning. Publication News Format: 234 x 156 (R8vo) Pub Date: c. 15/10/2015 Pages: c. 312pp Series: Second Language Acquisition Pbk ISBN 9781783094370 Hbk ISBN 9781783094387 £34.95 / US$59.95 / CAN$64.95 / €44.95 £109.95 / US$189.95 / CAN$199.95 / €139.95
It is clearly illogical to search for one good, universal solution for multilingual education whe... more It is clearly illogical to search for one good, universal solution for multilingual education when educational contexts differ so widely due to demographic and social factors. The studies in this volume seek to investigate not only whether certain solutions and practices are 'good', but also when and for whom they make sense.